Joan Collins (Dublin South Central, Independent)
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142. To ask the Minister for Finance the impact Brexit or a crash out will have on Irish persons who## are paying into private pensions in the United Kingdom. [10486/19]

Paschal Donohoe (Dublin Central, Fine Gael)
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I am assuming that the question is in reference to occupational pension schemes.

In that context I would like to clarify that the Department of Employment Affairs and Social Protection (DEASP) is responsible for occupational pensions policy. Additionally, the Pensions Authority (PA), which is a body under the aegis of DEASP is responsible for regulating Institutions for Occupational Retirement Provision (IORPs) under the IORP Directive, which governs the operation of cross-border IORPs. The PA also supervises Personal Retirement Savings Account (PRSA) providers in relation to their approved PRSA products. 

Firstly, regarding Irish persons paying into approved private pension schemes in the UK, tax relief is available on contributions into and on the growth of the investment under our Exempt, Exempt, Taxed (EET) system which is set out in the Taxes Consolidation Act 1997.  Provisions to maintain this in the event of a hard Brexit are included in the Withdrawal of the United Kingdom from the European Union (Consequential Provisions) Bill 2019, the so called Brexit Omnibus Bill, which is currently going through the Houses.

The question of whether or not a UK Company Scheme Pension will be paid into an Irish bank account post-Brexit is a matter for the relevant scheme provider. If the pension provider is an insurance company that has not yet established in an EU/EEA as part of their contingency preparations this contract would be covered under the legislative amendments to the EU Insurance and reinsurance regulations, contained in Part 8 of the draft legislation. It may be beneficial for any concerned party to contact their personal pension provider in the first instance to clarify what contingency plans have been put in place. 

In relation to the making of or receiving financial payments. SEPA is the Single Euro Payments Area which enables payment transfers in euro between accounts in SEPA countries. The UK Government has committed to keeping its payment rules in line with SEPA in order to continue its access post Brexit. As stated on its website: 'There is nothing in UK private occupational pensions legislation that prevents occupational pension schemes from making pension payments overseas, We do not expect that this will change as a result of Brexit.'

In the event that the UK is excluded from SEPA some additional costs may arise for transfers in euro moving between accounts in the UK and accounts in the EU, and they may take longer than they currently do. Customers should contact their finance provider where they have specific queries.

Finally, the impact of Brexit, and in particular a hard Brexit, on markets and the euro/sterling exchange rate is difficult to estimate with any certainty but may have an impact on the beneficiaries of  occupational pension schemes.